By Afix Redzuan
SHAH ALAM, Sept 15: The youths are becoming more inclined towards venturing into agriculture using modern technology, which brings in more yields, says Dato’ Seri Amirudin Shari.
The Selangor Menteri Besar said the positive development can be seen through the youth participation in the 2020 Selangor Agro Icon programme, whereby those taking part come in the age range of 40 and below.
“I am glad to see that the youths have participated in this field and were able to produce high quality and competitive agricultural goods.
“Some of the products were even brought by the agriculture and entrepreneurial committees to international exhibitions in Japan and Singapore as well as local events,” Amirudin said when met after the 2020 Selangor Agro Icon ceremony, held at the Selangor Agricultural Development Corporation (PKPS) building here last night.
He said Selangor has vast exposure in modern technological advancements as various agencies in the state are continuously analysing new findings in the agriculture industry, such as those done by Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) and Institut Penyelidikan dan Kemajuan Pertanian (Mardi).
Amirudin said the state government had in the Selangor economic recovery package allocated RM50 million for PKPS to kickstart new agricultural initiatives despite facing limited land and human resources issues.
“Even though this industry only contributes around 1.4 per cent to the state’s gross domestic product (GDP), it has the potential of producing quality products for local consumption,” he added.
Earlier, Amirudin had presented awards and prizes to 10 Selangor Agro Icons who were selected based on their accomplishments of using modern technology in agriculture.
Each winner received cash prizes worth RM10,000 and trophies as well as being elected as ambassadors to lead new groups of aspiring agro-icons.
